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SKS Microfinance ends High Growth year on Inclusive Note
June '2008
New Delhi, June 11, 2008: SKS Microfinance Pvt. Ltd., India's largest microfinance institution has ended the 2007-08 financial year on a high note of financial and social inclusion having extended unsecured loans worth Rs.1700 crore among 1.9 million households across 15 Indian states. This is a significant leap over its cumulative disbursal of loans worth Rs. 697 crore among 6 lac households since 1998. The company operates through 771 branches as compared to 275 branches in the last fiscal. Sharing audited results of the company here, Founder and CEO Dr Vikram Akula said, "In keeping with the larger mandate of financial and social inclusion of the Government and the RBI, SKS Microfinance's growth has played an inclusive role by making an impact on the lives of the poor in significant numbers - both economically and socially - this year." In all, 35 percent of SKS members belong to Backward Castes, 24 per cent to Scheduled Castes and 17 percent OBCs. The employee strength which went up from 2389 to 6424 during the year also reflects this with 25 per cent belonging to OBCs, 21 per cent to Scheduled Castes and 19 per cent to Backward Castes. "Our fast-paced inclusive growth this year has been powered by a third round of equity infusion worth Rs. 147 crore in January and Rs.1267 crore raised against that as debt by partnering with leading banks in India," Dr Akula elaborated. SKS Microfinance has attracted leading social investors like Unitus, a Seattle-based NGO that helps promote microfinance; Small Industries Development Bank of India, technology entrepreneur Vinod Khosla and Sequoia, Columbia Ventures Corporation, Silicon Valley Bank and Yatish Trading. A trust belonging to our members is also an equity partner in the NBFC business of SKS. SKS Microfinance has attracted leading social investors like Unitus, a Seattle-based NGO that helps promote microfinance; Small Industries Development Bank of India, technology entrepreneur Vinod Khosla and venture capital/private equity players like Sequoia Capital, a premier investment firm which has invested in market leaders like Applabs, Bharti Telesoft, Cafe Coffee Day, Edelweiss, GVK Biosciences etc. A trust belonging to our members is also an equity partner in the NBFC business of SKS. On the strength of its strong performance and the reputation of investors backing it, SKS has been able to raise debt worth Rs.1700 crore from reputed banks like the Small Industries Development Bank of India, Corporation Bank, Axis Bank, Bank of India, Yes Bank, Indian Bank, South Indian Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, HDFC, Citi Bank, HSBC, IndusInd Bank, Karur Vysya Bank and Industrial Development Bank. SKS provides unsecured loans and micro-insurance products to poor women and their families spread across 30,000 villages and slums of India while maintaining a 99% repayment rate. SKS adds over 120 new branches and 160,000 new customers every month, growing at an annual rate of 200%, one of the fastest in the industry. On average, an SKS member borrows Rs.8,300/- under the basic income generating loan product. There is also a higher denomination Individual Loan Product which is extended to members who have completed at least one loan cycle with the company. This averages Rs.30,000. Loan cover risk insurance under LIC, a health insurance cover for the member and family through a tie-up with ICICI Lombard and a retail insurance product launched jointly with Bajaj Allianz are the basic products offered to SKS members. SKS Microfinance has recently got the distinction of being the first microfinance company in the world whose internal audit team of 225 employees has received an ISO certification. The company conducts monthly audits across its branches. Its external auditors are S. R.Batliboi & Co. The company aims to reach out to 5 million poor households this fiscal, said Dr Akula.
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